Alabama
Alabama named in Paul Finebaum’s head-turning CFP prediction
The Alabama Crimson Tide had a lot of nerves awaiting the committee’s decision on their College Football Playoff fate, but they ended up getting into the field as the No. 9 seed and will face off against No. 8 Oklahoma.
Kalen DeBoer and company did not have a good showing against the Georgia Bulldogs in the SEC championship game. They lost that matchup by a final score of 28-7. However, they’ll have a chance to prove that they belong.
While many have already written Alabama off as a potential national championship contender, there is one notable analyst who believes that the Crimson Tide still have a path to winning it all.
Read more: Texas, Arch Manning Dealt More Bad News After Missing CFP
Paul Finebaum still believes that there’s a chance Alabama could make a stunning run to a title.
During an appearance on “Get Up” on Monday morning, Finebaum revealed the pathway that he sees for Alabama to win a championship.
“The pairings could have been a lot worse. I, frankly, think if Alabama can get past Oklahoma, at least on paper, they have a path. It may not be that great for anybody who watched Indiana play on Saturday night,” Finebaum said. “But I think a lot of Alabama people would feel pretty good about it.”
Beating Oklahoma will be no easy task. The Sooners have had an up-and-down season at times, but they are loaded with talent on both sides of the football. Should the Crimson Tide pull off a win over Oklahoma, a much tougher test would await.
As Finebaum mentioned, Alabama would then have to take on the No. 1-seeded Indiana Hoosiers. Led by head coach Curt Cignetti, Indiana is fresh off of beating the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Big Ten championship game by a score of 13-10. They’re legit and they have arguably the best quarterback in the nation with Fernando Mendoza.
No one can count out any top-tier team at this point in time. There is a chance that the Crimson Tide could make a shocking run to a national championship win. That being said, DeBoer and company will have to fix a lot of weaknesses to do that.
Read more: Ohio State’s Ryan Day Sends Warning Ahead of College Football Playoff
One weakness that Finebaum sees has been the recent play of quarterback Ty Simpson and Alabama’s running game.
“Anything I say about Ty Simpson, it will be articulated 1000 times more,” Finebaum said. “But something is wrong. Is it the lack of running game? Is it problems up front? But he just doesn’t seem to be the same quarterback he was eight weeks ago. I think that has to be a major concern going into Norman.”
The Crimson Tide will face off against the Sooners on December 19. Fans can only wait and hope that the team can fix the issues that were clearly present against Georgia.
For more on the Alabama Crimson Tide and college football news, head to Newsweek Sports.
Alabama
University of Alabama police officer's family leans on law enforcement community after his death
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (WBRC) – Pauline Love, the new head coach of the Alabama women’s basketball team, says her late college coach, Joye Lee-McNelis, is the reason she got into coaching.
Love played for Lee-McNelis at Southern Miss, describing her as a second mother. Lee-McNelis passed away last summer after a long battle with breast cancer.
A relationship that changed her path
Love said she once told Lee-McNelis she would never go into coaching, a conversation the two laughed about often.
“I used to tell her all the time, I would never do this. I would never put up with somebody like me or I would never work for somebody like her. I was like coach, you’re crazy. We used to laugh about it all the time and she was like you’ll see one day, you’ll see,” Love said.
Love had planned to work in the tech industry. Instead, she has spent 15 years in coaching.
“She pretty much paved the way for me. There’s no way I’d be sitting here if it wasn’t for her,” Love said.
High expectations at Alabama
Love returns to Tuscaloosa after previously serving as an assistant at Alabama. She was introduced as head coach in April, and was brought to tears when she mentioned Lee-McNelis during that introduction.
Her goals for the program are clear.
“I’m going to have a passion about it. I want to bring a Final Four to the University of Alabama and make Tuscaloosa proud,” Love said.
This year’s roster includes Spring Garden’s Ace Austin, back for her sophomore season.
Love said she wants her players to know that difficult times are part of the process.
“I can say for them, I’ve been there. I’ve done it. Just learn how to figure out and fight through hard things. You gotta do something hard and fight through it and I promise you it’s rewarding at the end of it,” Love said.
Love said she also wants to be a source of support for her players off the court, the same way Lee-McNelis was for her.
“I know we always get caught up in the money part of it, but I got a group of girls that doesn’t care about that. They want to care about making the fans happy and giving them something good to watch,” Love said.
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Alabama football fans are invited to a preseason pep rally Aug. 4 at the Tuscaloosa River Market.
The pep rally is part of the annual fall kickoff event hosted by the Tuscaloosa County chapter of the University of Alabama National Alumni Association.
The family friendly event will begin at 5:30 p.m. at the River Market, 1900 Jack Warner Parkway. Tickets, which include a barbecue dinner, cost $30 for adults and $15 for children ages 8 to 12. Children 7 years old and younger will be admitted for free.
The pep rally will feature live entertainment, a silent auction and a range of family-friendly activities. There will also be a cash bar with wine and beer.
Tickets can be purchased on the chapter’s website, tuscaloosacountyuaalumni.com. Membership in the local alumni chapter is not required for attendance.
University of Alabama President Peter Mohler and UA baseball coach Rob Vaughn will be part of the festivities.
Mohler began his duties as UA president on July 21, 2025.
Before being named UA president, Mohler spent nearly 15 years at Ohio State University, where he held senior leadership roles overseeing research, innovation and economic development. He also served as OSU’s acting president, providing leadership during a pivotal period for one of the nation’s largest public universities.
Mohler earned a bachelor’s degree in biology from Wake Forest University and a PhD in cell and molecular physiology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at Duke University Medical Center before joining the faculty at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
Vaughn has been UA’s head baseball coach for three years, leading the Crimson Tide to the College Baseball World Series in 2026.
The Humble, Texas, native served as head baseball coach at Maryland for five seasons before coming to Tuscaloosa.
Vaughn played collegiate baseball at Kansas State, where his position was catcher.
Alabama begins the 2026 football season on Sept. 5 with a home game against the East Carolina Pirates. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
Other Alabama home games include Florida State on Sept. 19, South Carolina on Sept. 26, Georgia on Oct. 10, Texas A&M on Oct. 24, Chattanooga on Nov. 21 and Auburn on Nov. 28.
Reach Ken Roberts at ken.roberts@tuscaloosanews.com. To support his work, please subscribe to The Tuscaloosa News.
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